A viral video has sparked quite a bit of controversy and protests for the Spokane Valley Police Department. An event that was held December 7 resulted in a sheriff’s deputy making comments about the use of the department’s new MRAP (Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected) vehicle. He claimed that it was needed to protect against “constitutionalists.”

Just to be clear, according to the Police Department, the Spokane County Sheriff’s Department is a contracted part of the police department.

Concern was voiced that the MRAP made sense in a place like Iraq or Afghanistan, where there is actual mines to be protected from. However, the question was asked, “But what kind of situation in the US could you see that happening?”

“Well…it's like you said, we’ve got a lot of constitutionalists and a lot of people that stockpile weapons….a lot of ammunition and they have no weapons here locally,” he said.

Now, I have no idea who the “they” is that this man is speaking about. Is he talking about the sheriff’s department? Or the Spokane Valley Police Department? Calls to the Spokane Valley Police Department did confirm that all officers are armed just like any other police department. However, the gentleman who answered the phone told me he did not remember the statements about people not having weapons locally, but you can hear it loud and clear on the video.

Spokane Valley Republican Representative Matthew Shea responded to the video by asking, “Will law abiding citizens who love the Constitution and Rule of Law be hunted down with MRAPs?”

“Constitutionalism is fundamental to being an American. To hate the Constitution and those who support it means you are a traitor to this country,” added Shea.

Sheriff Ozzie Knezovich claims that people are taking the deputy out of context in an attempt to criticize law enforcement.

However, I ask you, how is anyone taking this guy out of context? He was specifically asked what kind of situation in the US he could see a use for this mine-resistant armored vehicle and his answer was spontaneous to blacklist constitutionalists!

The fact is that Sheriff Knezovich’s deputy took the opportunity to criticize and actually paint in a bad light anyone that believes in the Second Amendment and the law that governs the land, like it or not.

Furthermore, these men have taken an oath to uphold that same Constitution. So, why would they have a problem with people arming themselves with guns and stockpiling ammunition for those guns. Do they have a problem with the US military stockpiling weapons and ammunition? What about the Department of Homeland Security and all the agencies under them? Do they have a problem with their own department stockpiling weapons and ammunition… Or armored vehicles for that matter? Do they know of constitutionalists with MRAPs that they are going to be up against? I think we all know the answer to those questions and I’m far more concerned about many of those agencies than I am a single person who takes the moniker of “constitutionalist,” but has no idea what it means. The people, who exercise their duty to keep and bear arms, can deal with those kinds of people before the cops even arrive on the scene.

The Spokesman-Review reports about an upcoming protest of the Spokane Valley Police Department this weekend.

Scott Maclay, president of the Rattlesnakes Motorcycle Club, has invited other constitutionalists to join him Saturday at 2 p.m. for a protest at the “occupied” Spokane Valley Police Department on East Sprague Avenue. The Valley’s law enforcement services are provided by the Sheriff’s Office under a contract with the city.

Protesters will barbecue food in the parking lot, openly carry firearms and erect a Christmas tree to leave letters of complaint directed at the Sheriff’s Office in its branches.

Maclay said state Rep. Matt Shea, R-Spokane Valley, is among those expected to attend.

Knezovich said the backlash against the video is politically motivated, citing Maclay’s involvement – including a $170 donation – with a political opponent’s campaign this fall.

The sheriff also said the deputy, who has gone unnamed, was counseled not to make broad statements to characterize large groups of people.

“The term constitutionalist has a widespread meaning. Some people say I am a constitutionalist,” he said. “But people need to understand that there are people who carry that title who have killed police officers.”

Sounds like a 1984 style re-education if you ask me. This is what political correctness gets us. Those that are not constitutionalists, but are murderous criminals call themselves constitutionalists and the sheriff’s department lets it stick. Islamists who engage in Islam are called radicals, not Islamists. And Socialists and Communists are called Democrats. Let’s clear up our definitions, shall we?

One YouTube commenter stated it best when he wrote, “Simple way to avoid making any future videos like this one. Don’t say that you have MRAPs to defend yourselves against constitutionalists.”

As for Mr. Maclay, he just wants Sheriff Knezovich to take responsibility and requested that the department return the MRAP to the federal government. However, Knezovich said he has no intention of returning a “free piece of equipment,” which he received under the Department of Defense’s 1033 program, that he says will be used to deal with incidents like school shootings.

Tell me again, how many school shootings have there been? How many of those shootings actually required an MRAP? Were there mines laid out in the driveways of any of the schools?

Calls to the Sheriff, as well as the Public Information Officer of the department have not been returned as of the writing of this article. However, the sheriff did post a video response.

UPDATE: Spokane Police Public Information Officer Deputy Mark Gregory returned our phone call and was happy to speak with us regarding the incident. Deputy Gregory told us that he and the department would like for the full footage of the video to be released which would demonstrate what had been said prior to the few minutes that are shown.

One of the things Mr. Gregory spoke about was the fact that the deputy prefaced his answer with, "Well...as you said..." indicating that they were both probably on the same understanding of what he was speaking about.

Gregory also indicated that the deputy is a veteran, who has earned a medal of valor and is in full support of the Constitution and protecting law abiding citizens' rights.

He also informed us that the police were at this particular event, which was a multi-county police Christmas event where items are purchased for children in need at Christmas. All of the participants were strictly voluntary and the MRAP was used in a similar manner more for the kids sake like a Firetruck or other large vehicle used in a parade.

Mr. Gregory agreed that the perception of those watching the video would lead to one thing and he seemed to agree with the assessment I gave above about strings being tied to the federal government with "free goodies." However, he did not mention school shootings, but did make mention of incidents where SWAT teams are involved and that since these items had been paid for already, it helped out their department and didn't lay another burden on the taxpayer.

"We all need to talk in the community," Gregory told me. "It's when people get quiet that we have issues."

I tend to agree that as a community we should become more involved in one another's lives out of love, not out of snooping. That is the way I took Officer Gregory's comments as well.

As a final note, Gregory told me that the deputy, if he had the chance, would rephrase how he made his comments. He then explained to me how people in the area where he is at become basically full blown anarchists, calling themselves constitutionalists, and that is what was being referenced. He agreed with me that we should start correcting the terminology we use for those kinds of people and reflect the true definition of the term "constitutionalist."

Now, you have both sides of the story.

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